Badminton racquets are well known and typically include a tubular head portion attached to a tubular handle portion. The head portion forms a hoop supporting a latticework of tensioned strings. The latticework of strings is commonly referred to as a string bed and includes a plurality of intersecting cross and main string segments, which attach to the head portion. The handle portion downwardly and outwardly extends from a lower portion of the head portion to form a generally T-shaped connection region. The handle portion typically includes a handle attached to the proximal end of the handle portion. The handle is covered by a grip.
There is a continuing desire to increase the performance, responsiveness and control of the racquet, and to improve the strength and durability of the connection region of head and handle portions. Badminton racquets must provide players with the ability to complete high-speed swing actions to bat a shuttlecock at short intervals in a relatively small court space compared with, for example, the game of tennis. The speed of the game necessitates that a badminton racket be constructed to be light in weight and have satisfactory resilience for easy handling. Furthermore, in order to satisfy the need for a high-speed swing action, the dimensions of the badminton racket in the swing direction must be minimized. Such configurations maintain the moment of inertia and air resistance of the badminton racquet at desirable levels. It is also necessary that the racquet possess high mechanical strength in order withstand the stress of a high-speed swing as well as various impact loads arising from the use of the racquet. It can be very difficult to reliably satisfy all of these design requirements. For example, a badminton that is light weight, highly resilient and provides minimum air resistance may also have very low mechanical strength.
The cross-sectional size of the handle portion of a badminton racquet is generally quite small compared to that of other racquet sport racquets such as tennis or racquetball. The cross-sectional size of the head portion of a badminton racquet is also smaller than that of other sports racquets. Also, the head portion typically connects to the handle portion at a single location as opposed to two or more locations commonly used with tennis racquets. This single connection point provides badminton racquets with a high level of flexibility. Although flexibility in some aspects of the racquet is desired, such as in the swing direction, a highly torsionally flexible racquet, or a racquet with a reduced resistance to torsional bending, is undesirable because it can lead to poor control, reduced accuracy and lower performance. Further, the relatively small size of the head and handle portions place a large amount of stress on the single connection region of the head and handle portions. As a result, it is not uncommon for badminton racquets to prematurely fail at the connection region.
In an effort to address the premature failure issue, some existing badminton racquets have included T-shaped joints at the connection between the head and handle portions. These joints typically include an elongate vertical joint section that extends a significant distance into the handle portion of the racquet. As a result, the length, and the cross-sectional size, of the joint section within the handle member is typically as large, or larger, than the length, and the cross-sectional size, of the joint section positioned within the head portion of such racquets. The rather large size of the existing T-shaped joints can negatively effect the weight of the racquet and, as a result, the playability of the racquet. Further, the elongate extension into the handle portion of the racquet can stiffen, and reduce the flexibility of, the racquet, particularly in the swing direction. Such stiffening is undesirable because it can decrease the responsiveness and playability of the racquet.
Thus, there is a continuing need for a badminton racquet that is highly durable and reliable, but also provides the desired level of performance and playability. What is needed is an improved racquet design that inhibits premature failure without negatively affecting the overall weight of the badminton racquet. What is also needed is a durable badminton racquet with desired responsiveness, particularly in the swing direction. Further, it would be advantageous to provide a durable racquet with high playability that can be efficiently and reliably produced.